You may have heard that Amazon has thrown their hat into the ring of selling music online. iTunes has been the big player for legal downloading of music for years, but eMusic and now Amazon continue to make competition more interesting. I tested Amazon as well as the new eMusic remote and have to say they are both strong products. So I bought the new Athlete album on iTunes, the new Joni Mitchell album on eMusic and the new Thrills album on Amazon. Both Amazon and eMusic's new app download the file and load it automatically into your iTunes library, which is handy and skips an extra step. eMusic continues to specialize in indie music whereas Amazon seems to have a very similar catalog as iTunes. There are definitely differences between the services. Apple continues to copy protect their music. Both eMusic and Amazon sell unprotected mp3's which means you can listen to them on any device without having to enter a password. Another major difference is that eMusic is a monthly charge for a set number of songs. Both iTunes and Amazon charge per song. Another difference is that Amazon charges less per track for popular music. I recommend giving them a look if you're into legally downloading music. I may just continue to use all three to their strengths. On a separate note, eMusic recently launched an audiobooks section, which is one more step in making the competition heightened.

News from remote Alaska...The Mad Fischicist and Belle Etoile welcome their second child, a beautiful daughter Jolie. Mom and baby are doing great. Head over to Belle Etoile's blog for the specs and pictures.

September 22, 2007

I won't title this "New Music Tuesday", but I wouldn't feel right if I didn't highlight a new release this week. Counting Crows released a reissue of August and Everything After. August is one of the most special albums for me coming out of the 90's for its influence and its timelessness. Along with the original 11 tracks, come 6 demos from that time period and if you buy from iTunes, they throw in an amazing concert from France. The version of "Round Here" from the Elysee Monmarte show (a version that was a b-side on one of the singles on Recovering The Satellites - Remember singles?) is worth the $14.99 iTunes is charging for 30 tracks. They know how good the "Round Here" version is as they've made it "Album Only". If you've been reading MKinMotion.com for any length of time, you've probably been inundated with how much I love this album and this band. The reissue of August and Everything After is great in and of itself, but also serves as a perfect primer for the first all-new album from the Crows since 2002's Hard Candy. Saturday Nights, Sunday Mornings is set to be released in November and has already generated quite a bit of buzz with fans and non fans alike.

September 18, 2007

In my weekly meeting with an ad agency, I brought up the fact that our advertising is not reaching me. I was told I am in a unique demographic that advertisers everywhere are trying to reach.

I rarely read the newspaper. I get the majority of my news online.I only listen to 15 minutes of commercial radio a day. I listen to NPR, podcasts and music on my iPod.I watch the majority of my television post-broadcast via Tivo skipping through the advertisements. I don't watch local news, network prime time programming (with a few exceptions; LOST, The Office). I enjoy a good TV spot, so when I watch sports or other TV, I am very aware of what ads are running.I don't eat fast food or drink big brand beer. I avoid Wal-Mart.

My demographic is valuable, despite its elusiveness because in theory I have disposable income, a desire to be on the cutting edge of technology, vehicles, and entertainment. I'm old enough that I still pay for music; young enough that I still get out to see live music and go to movies; and active enough in my geography that I require clothing and equipment for all seasons and climates. It will be a challenge for those who make/sell products as well as those who produce ads for such products to reach generations that continue to go further and further from the traditional big three mediums of newsprint, television and radio. It's already clear those in the print, television and radio industries are doing all they can to keep their mediums as the dominant distribution of content.

If you're not recognizing the messages advertisers are throwing at you, you should. There is lots of research and analysis going into every ad placed. If for no other reason, you'll know what demographics are behaving the same way as you.

September 17, 2007

It's fascinating how the human brain works, isn't it? I'm sitting here reading an article about corrupt Alaskan politicians (allegedly corrupt) and the image of Garth Brooks trying out for the San Diego Padres crosses my mind....quick fact check takes that back to 98-99 (apparently he worked with the Mets in 2004, too). How does the brain warehouse useless trivial information and then all of a sudden with no apparent triggering effect, put it at the front of your mind? I guess when I think of the subject, I realize I've already thought and typed too much about it.

I've had some good revelations and realizations about blogging lately as I've been avoiding typing anything in this space. I've remained fairly active with Twitter and Facebook, so If you haven't already, get signed up and look me up.

September 1, 2007

Clay Buchholz won't have to deal with being an anonymous sillouette for long after today's no hitter. Not only has Buchholz not been in the majors long enough to have a photo on file, but he's still waiting to get credit for the win on ESPN.com...hence the ND above.